Governments of Canada, Manitoba, the Town of Manitou and the Rural Municipality of Pembina Deliver New BizPaL Services

Online Business Permit and Licence Service Saves Time, Cuts Paperwork and Helps Entrepreneurs

MANITOU, MANITOBA--(Marketwire - Feb. 22, 2011) - Starting and running a business in the Town of Manitou and the Rural Municipality of Pembina just became easier thanks to BizPaL, an online business permit and licence service that saves time spent on paperwork and helps entrepreneurs start up faster.

Today, Candice Hoeppner, Member of Parliament for Portage–Lisgar, on behalf of the Honourable Rob Moore, Minister of State (Small Business and Tourism), together with the Honourable Peter Bjornson, Minister of Entrepreneurship, Training and Trade for the Province of Manitoba, and Penny Schoonbaert, Community Services Manager for the Pembina–Manitou Community Development Corporation, welcomed the launch of BizPaL in Manitou and Pembina.

"Our government is demonstrating a strong commitment to small and medium-sized businesses by improving access to financing, reducing taxes and cutting the red tape that businesses face every day," said MP Hoeppner. "BizPaL is a great example of our government's hard work to support Canadian businesses as they innovate, create jobs and generate wealth in our communities."

BizPaL is an innovative service that provides entrepreneurs with simplified access to information on the permits and licences they need to establish and run their businesses. This unique partnership among federal, provincial, territorial and municipal governments is designed to cut through the paperwork burden and red tape that small business owners encounter. The BizPaL services in Manitou and Pembina were developed by the Town of Manitou, the Rural Municipality of Pembina, the Province of Manitoba and the Government of Canada.

"BizPaL is a powerful online tool that enables entrepreneurs and small business owners to identify their regulatory requirements quickly and efficiently," said Minister Bjornson.

"BizPaL is just one example of how our government is committed to reducing red tape and helping businesses grow in Manitoba."

"We recognize the advantages of offering BizPaL to our residents as another economic development tool," said Ms. Schoonbaert. "This will greatly benefit new and existing business owners as they grow their businesses, create more jobs and build economic prosperity in our community."

BizPaL is an online service that benefits Canadian businesses by helping them identify which permits and licences they require and how to obtain them. Entrepreneurs simply answer a series of questions on the type of business they want to start or expand and the activities they plan to undertake. BizPaL then automatically generates a list of all required permits and licences from all levels of government, along with basic information on each, and links to government sites where the entrepreneur can learn more and, in some cases, apply online.

BizPaL also benefits governments by making it easier for them to provide businesses with accurate information on permits and licences. Although the service is offered online, it can also be used through other service channels (i.e., telephone and in-person centres) to extend services to more clients.

To date, 11 provinces and territories are participating in BizPaL, with more than 520 municipalities offering the service. Visit the BizPaL website (www.bizpal.ca) for a complete list of participating jurisdictions.

Industry Canada is the lead federal department for the BizPaL initiative, supporting the centralized functions of the project. The Government of Canada is fully committed to creating a competitive business environment that supports innovation and reduces red tape. BizPaL is contributing to the government's success in reducing the paperwork burden on small businesses by 20 percent.

The success of BizPaL is due in part to the multi-jurisdictional partnership among federal, provincial, territorial and municipal governments. The partnership operates under a shared governance and costing model with collaborative decision making. Each jurisdiction is responsible for adding and maintaining its own information in BizPaL.

The Manitoba BizPaL Office, located in the Department of Entrepreneurship, Training and Trade, is charged with engaging local governments to make this important service available across Manitoba. BizPaL is an integral component of Manitoba's Single Window for Business Initiative, which is focused on improving the accessibility of the Province's business information and services and helping to cut red tape. This interactive and smart permit and licence tool is featured on the Government of Manitoba website (www.Manitoba.ca/business).

The Town of Manitou and the Rural Municipality of Pembina join 35 other Manitoba municipalities now offering the BizPaL service. These communities are pleased to join BizPaL and offer additional services to attract new business and strengthen the local economy.